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Saturday, June 23, 2012

Guest Blog: Join Fantasy Adventure Author Kay Murky as she discusses the importance of a bromance

Kay Murky has recently completed an epic fantasy novel which is the first in a series and made an adventure into the world of Indie Publishing with her dragon books. Please welcome Kay Murky and let her know what you think about Bromance and how it adds to the story in the comment section below.

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In praise of the Bromance

In romance the relationship between the main characters overshadows all, but I have given some thought on the fact that a well handled 'bromance' between the hero and a secondary character, or between two secondary characters, can add quite a lot to character and plot development.

Often an author would refer to the hero as "a man's man", but seldom do they show how he would handle himself among other men. How does he interact with his friends, and what do they think of him? The way a man would approach the start of a friendship with another man can say a lot about him, and his character. Is he open, understanding? Does he flirt?

Yes, there is a certain amount of 'flirting' involved in the start of a 'bromance', though it is on a totally different level than that of the sexual flirting between a man and a woman! Of course, most of the gentlemen would deny this, but next time you see a budding bromance, watch for those signals! The shared looks, the nudges, and the punch on the shoulder... all part of bromance flirting.

As a writer of Fantasy, on a large scale, it was fun to include a couple of these bromance situations in my new novel, KIRDAI: Spark and Dagger. The initial stages of the bromance can often be as fraught with possibilities for misunderstanding as that of an actual romance, as in this scene between my hero, Dai, and his mentor and eventual best friend, Geshar:

' By this time they had reached the bathing room under the kitchen and for once Dai did not feel shy about stripping in front of another person. Conversation stopped until both had sluiced off under the showers and they had moved to the hot pool. Dai tried to study the other man

unobtrusively, wondering about him, then could not help the question that he

blurted out.

"You don't have a beard, and you don't have body hair, except for..."

The tips of Dai's ears turned red, but Geshar barked a laugh.

"No, and neither have you. And you don't even have any hair there."

This made Dai blush brightly as he realised that the other man had been studying him just as intently. He wondered if he was perhaps physically attracted to the big man. Was that why he felt so strangely comfortable in his presence? But no, his body did not react the way it had when he had listened in on the thoughts of some of the more amorous occupants of the castle at night.

"I just wondered," he muttered, turning in the water so that he partially faced away from Geshar.

"I understand. You've been among men who grow beards, and wear carpets on their bodies. And in turn they've looked at you, seen that you have no body hair, and thought you a child."

Geshar lifted himself out and sat down on the side of the pool with his feet dangling in the water.

"I only now realise how hard it must have been, and must still be, for you to be here among a strange people. It must have been difficult to know that you're different, but not to know why."

Dai turned to face him again, and nodded, dropping down until just his head showed above the water. Hiding... '

Of course, the Onlashian dragons, with their love of adventures and all things extreme and their bonds with humans, make the 'bromance' type opportunities almost unlimited In KIRDAI the dragons are intelligent beings, intellectually and emotionally on the same level as their human counterparts. And the initial phase of a bond between a human and a dragon is very much like the start of a romance (or tailchase, as the dragons call it), or bromance, for that matter. I had so much fun writing these scenes that I would love to share one of them with you, below.

Btu for now, I will leave you with the thought that friendship, and how it

is approached, can be a very important part of how we see a character, or

even a person in real life. We should take notice of this in our real

relationships, or in literature, to learn more about ourselves and others.

Extract from KIRDAI: Spark & Dagger.

'... And as if he did not have enough to think about, there was Karragh. After he had thought that they had built up a good friendship, that he had finally found a truly close friendship, the dragon had started to withdraw. Every time Geshar looked for him, Karragh was busy elsewhere. If they had spoken three sentences in the previous two days, it had been a lot. He felt as if he had been abandoned. Geshar, the rock, was feeling hurt. And that made him irritated on top of the frustration...

...Geshar caught himself just in time as he nearly fell over his own feet, his musing finally having distracted him to the point where he had lost the momentum of the exercise. Uttering a soft curse he stalked off the practice ground.

Many eyes followed him. He knew that, and he did not care.

His irritation had moved to anger and being the person he was, Geshar needed to act to solve his problems. There was nothing he could do about Tanika, but there was something he could do about Karragh and also, for that matter, about his so called responsibilities to his family and his country. He had four other brothers who were equally capable of serving as the next Warlord to follow his uncle. Any one of them could do it; especially the youngest, who at twenty three already showed a lot of promise.

The family would have to wait though. Right now, there was a dragon he needed to see...

...Karragh had been sitting on a hilltop, watching the practice. Like most dragons he had an eye for beauty and art, and the movements of the marflitta were so much like a dance that it was a joy to behold. He was not the only dragon observing, so nobody would have even given him a second look. That he was only watching one participant was fortunately not obvious. As Geshar stumbled, then strode off the field, the big brown dragon hummed softly to himself. Time to get lost.

Karragh had been cheating.

He knew it, and he did not care. If someone such as Warah found out, he probably would be in great trouble, might even get called in before the elders for a breach of ethics. But to him, the goal justified the means. That his goal was selfish, he did not care about either.

Whereas Geshar had had no contact with Karragh, the dragon could not say the same. Since that first night that he had taken the man flying with him he had retained a light mental link with him. It was something Geshar would also have been able to do with Karragh, if the man had known that the possibility existed. They were already partially bonded. All Karragh had to do was to get Geshar to realise and then admit it.

The conversation with Minelbet and Tanika had actually given Karragh the idea for his current course of action. They had jokingly referred to it as a 'courtship', but afterwards, while contemplating the situation, he had realised that they were not that far off. So he had set his trap just as if it was a courtship. Show interest, woo a little, flirt a little, then withdraw to see if the other party takes the bait...

... now it was time for the next step. If the big man was looking for him, he (Geshar) would find him, but not for a mark or two. Spreading his wings, he (Karragh) took the roundabout way back to his spot in the camp, chuckling to himself... revelling in the situation.

This was as good as a tailchase. One he knew he had every chance of winning.... '